The Development of Practice Guidelines for a Palliative Care Multidisciplinary Case Conference

Area of Science:

• Palliative Care
• Healthcare Management
• Quality Improvement

Background:

• Limited development of multidisciplinary case conferences for palliative care patients in Ontario hospitals.
• Identified need for standardized approaches to palliative care multidisciplinary case conferences (pMCCs).

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe the process of developing a province-wide standards document for palliative care multidisciplinary case conferences (pMCCs).

Main Methods:

• Conducted a provincial survey and multidisciplinary cancer conference symposium to establish pMCCs as a priority.
• Performed a literature search and current state assessment (surveys, interviews) to identify challenges.
• Assembled a working group to draft recommendations, finalized by an expert panel.

Main Results:

• A framework for pMCC guidelines was created using 10 identified articles.
• Significant variability in existing pMCC structure and function was observed.
• Recommendations included meeting format, frequency (bi-weekly), case selection (all palliative patients), attendees (multidisciplinary team), and institutional requirements (coordinator, facilities).

Conclusions:

• The process for creating the first provincial guideline for palliative care multidisciplinary case conferences (pMCCs) is described.
• A key recommendation emphasizes pMCCs as a vital link between hospital and community care.